I do not normally knit outdoors, if only because my outdoor time tends to be pretty active ...and I have not, as of yet, figured out how to knit while cycling, hillwalking, or taking photos!

The other day, however, I was taking a little photo walk though the forest. And when at some point I stopped to change lenses, I noticed that I had my knitting tucked into my camera bag. As it happened, I was kind of tired at this point. So I thought - why not? I sat down under a tree and knit for a bit.

Now, prior to this point, I had been walking for over an hour and had encountered no one. Not a single person. But not 5 minutes after I picked up my needles, I heard footsteps rustling in the dried leaves behind me. I was sitting a few metres away from the trail, hidden - I thought - behind some trees. But the woman now walking toward me with an amused smile on her face must have spotted me. She asked about the knitting, told me she used to knit herself years ago, and we talked for a bit before she was on her way again.

Funny, I thought, the one person I meet in the forest all day is also a knitter. I then picked up my needles again. And honest to goodness, I hardly got through a full row of the cardigan I am working on, before I heard rustling again. This time it was a couple, with a young daughter and a boisterous dog, and they too were heading straight toward me - with the girl pointing and shouting 'Mummy, mummy, is she a witch or a fairy? Is she a witch or a fairy Mummy?!!' and the dog making a beeline for my camera bag. While gently holding back the dog, I chatted with them as well, as the woman wanted to know whether I could recommend a local crafting workshop that would be suitable for children.

Long story short, it soon became a very busy forest! I met an elderly man who told me all about his grandmother. And a teenage girl who was thinking of studying fashion design. Others too! I have no idea where all the people came from and how it was that they noticed my hiding spot and the fact I was knitting. But at length I realised it was probably best to put my needles and yarn away and stick with the photo walk ...during the remainder of which, I of course met nobody else.